How Autonomous Cars Are Helping to Prevent Car Accidents

Comments Off on How Autonomous Cars Are Helping to Prevent Car Accidents

North Carolina has one of the highest car crash fatality rates in America. In 2015 there were 1,275 car accidents which resulted in the deaths of 1,379 people. Although the circumstances of an accident can vary from one crash to the other, the causes of most of them can be summed up as human error.

Hardison & Cochran, Attorneys at Law have defended individuals that have suffered loss in car accidents and helped them get remuneration for their medical bills, lost wages, and injuries suffered in an accident. They give our clients excellent legal advice as to restores the things that matter after a person is in an accident.

Which is why we’ve watched with excitement how the development of self-driving cars promises to diminish car fatalities by integrating crash-avoidance systems capable of stopping the vehicle or getting it out of danger without having to wait for the driver’s reaction. What 10 years ago could only be found in a science fiction movie is now slowly becoming a reality.

Although the development of the self-driving car is relatively recent most of the technology used in it has been around for years. Since the 1980s cars have been increasingly incorporating computers to control the vehicle’s engine and transmission, helping make modern cars much more efficient than their predecessors. From there, applying modern technology to navigation was just one step away.

The autonomous car uses sophisticated sensors and computers to help the driver navigate the vehicle, and even take control of it to prevent an accident. This is done using a variety of techniques such as radar, GPS systems, computer vision, laser measuring, and motion sensors to keep the vehicle on a safe course, even if the driver feels sleepy or is drunk.

Autonomous cars make it easier for the driver to detect nearby vehicles, even if they are on the driver’s blind spot, and will warn the driver about their presence before they can become a potential threat. Radar, laser detection and sensors work as an extra pair of eyes that scout ahead not only for nearby vehicles, but also for pedestrians crossing the street.

If the vehicle recons that you’re at risk of hitting another vehicle, a cyclist, or pedestrian it will warn you beforehand and take the appropriate countermeasures. This includes tightening the seat belts, pre-charging the brakes, and even hitting them if the driver fails to respond to the threat quickly enough.

Autonomous vehicles also include lane departure systems which are designed to prevent a drunk, sleepy, or distracted driver from taking the car out of his lane. The system uses cameras and radar to follow the lane markings and will sound an alarm whenever the vehicle drifts out of the designated lane. Some vehicles will even maintain the vehicle on its course by making use of a system that works similar to an airplane’s autopilot, or even monitor the driver’s eyes and trigger an alarm whenever he’s falling asleep.

While the technology used in automated cars is still considered to be on a trial, the results which have been observed so far promise that in the future we will have safer vehicles that will be able to take over from easily distracted humans, helping us reduce the number of traffic deaths and injuries, and hopefully one day even eliminate any risk of road accidents.